May 21, 2013 - Jurors in U.S. District Court in Boston found last week that the Kohler Co. willfully infringed two patents belonging to an affiliate of the Westerbeke Corp., a Massachusetts-based manufacturer.
The patents-at-suit cover components that reduce exhaust emissions in marine generators, and were infringed by several models of Kohler's low carbon monoxide marine generators. Kohler filed a counterclaim seeking to have Westerbeke's patents declared invalid.
A spokesman for Kohler said that the technology it used in its generators is "well known and in the public domain" and had been developed years ago for use in the automotive industry.
Now that the verdict has issued, Kohler plans to ask the court to modify the jury’s verdict and will file appeals on "any remaining issues on infringement and invalidity."